


In Memoriam: A City of Gray Fic

by FenyxNyteRyder



Series: City of Gray Drabbles [3]
Category: 2P Hetalia - Fandom, Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, AmeCan, Black Velvet Burgers - Freeform, City of Gray AU, James is a hellhound, M/M, Matthew is a changeling, Multi, Peach Pancakes, Polyamory, Red Velvet Pancakes - Freeform, and Alfred is a human, peaches & cream pair, polyship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-25
Updated: 2016-06-25
Packaged: 2018-07-18 06:18:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7302928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FenyxNyteRyder/pseuds/FenyxNyteRyder
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Matthew and James have a surprise planned for Alfred's birthday, and after a trip between realms to the human world, the surprise is, needless to say, not what Alfred had in mind.</p><p>(Based off of the AU from my tumblr ask blog ask-aph-hellhound)</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Memoriam: A City of Gray Fic

“Are you sure this is a good idea though? What if somebody recognizes him? What if humans end up trying to attack _us_ , James?” the changeling murmured, pacing around the tree that grew through the middle of their living room, his violet gaze flitting over to where the hellhound was sprawled out across the couch, reading a book. It hadn’t been that long ago that the lovers had ended up all moving in together, yet they had already all become comfortable with each other’s presence and had settled in fairly easily.

 

The white-haired hellhound raised an eyebrow as he flipped to the next page of the book, snorting softly as he propped his chin against the palm of his hand before glancing over at the changeling, mirth glimmering in his red-violet heterochromatic eyes. “Matthew… Do you really think that the _King of Hell_ would be incapable of protecting his lovers from some mere humans? Besides, Alfred’s been training with Kiku for a while now, and you know magick too, so it’s not as though we’d be completely defenseless. We’re never completely defenseless.”

 

Matthew sighed, running a hand through his hair before fiddling with the allergy bracelet around his wrist, biting his lip nervously as he went over and sat down on the floor in front of the couch. “I… I know. I know you wouldn’t let anything or anyone end up hurting Alfred and I, but I’m... I’m just worried. It’s been awhile since either of us have gone back to the human realm, and it’s not exactly the most fae-friendly place.” The changeling paused momentarily before letting out a breath and turning to look at James, smiling and reaching out to pet the white wolf-like ears atop the other’s head. “I do really want to find out more about his life and where he came from before he ended up in Cinereo though.”

 

James hummed softly, closing the book and setting it aside as he grabbed a hold of Matthew’s hand and began planting gentle kisses along the changeling’s wrist and arm. “It’ll be fine, Chickadee,” the hellhound murmured quietly, fondly. “Everything will be just fine. I’ll make sure we all have a good time. It’s the least that I can do for both of your birthdays,” he whispered, lips trailing further along Matthew’s arm and up his neck, causing the changeling to let out a breathy sigh and close his eyes, laughing softly.

 

“Birthday sex would be just as good of a way to show us a good time, you know~,” Matthew chuckled, leaning into the hellhound’s arms and causing said hellhound to snort, rolling his eyes.

 

“I’m sure there will be plenty of time for that too. Just make sure to get the picnic basket packed and ready for when we’re going to go, okay?” James murmured, pressing a kiss to Matthew’s cheek before nuzzling into his boyfriend’s neck.

 

“Mm…” Matthew hummed softly, stroking his hand against James’s cheek. “I will. You know I will, Ya’akov,” he whispered, tilting the hellhound’s head up to brush their lips together with a contented sigh as his lover pulled him closer, the changeling crawling up onto the couch with the hellhound and straddling his waist. Breaking the kiss with lightly flushed cheeks as he looked down at the man beneath him, Matthew gave the other a small grin, a mischievous glint in his violet eyes. “So when should we tell Alfred?”

 

“Tell me what?”

 

The voice echoed across the room as the front door thudded shut, keys jangling together as they were thrown onto the table near the doorway. It caused Matthew and James to jolt upright from where they were laying on the couch, glancing over at their human lover who was looking at them with a mixture of bemusement and confusion across his expression.

 

“Don’t tell me you guys were about to fuck and not invite me to join in,” Alfred said, feigning a look of hurt as he pressed a hand to his chest, pouting slightly before breaking into a grin and walking over to the couch, bracing his hands on the back of the piece of furniture as he leaned over and pressed a kiss to the tops of both of his boyfriends’ heads. “But seriously though, what were you guys going to tell me?”

 

The hellhound and changeling shared a look, glancing at each other before returning their gaze to Alfred.

 

It was James that spoke up first.

 

“How do you feel about going on a trip to the human realm for your birthday?”

* * *

 “Y’know, this train has always freaked me out for some reason,” Alfred mumbled, rubbing his arms before he picked his suitcase up off the platform when the train had coasted silently to a stop in front of him, the human squinting at James when the hellhound chuckled and wrapped an arm around his waist.

 

“Maybe it’s because it’s a ghost train~,” the taller male teased, waggling his fingers at his human lover and attempting to suppress a chuckle at the shiver that ran down Alfred’s spine.

 

“Dude, stop it before I end up turning around and marching right back home!” Alfred exclaimed.

 

James hummed softly before grinning and picking up the blonde, throwing him over his shoulder as Matthew laughed from behind them when Alfred let out an indignant yelp of surprise. “Nope, too late,” the hellhound said as he carried the human up the steps of the train against no small amount of protesting about how Alfred was fully capable of walking by himself, Matthew following behind the pair with the remainder of the luggage and unable to fully suppress his giggles as he watched his lovers.

 

Upon reaching their cabin for the ride, the hellhound unceremoniously plopped Alfred down onto one of the seats, patting his head with a smirk. “Good boy.”

 

Huffing, Alfred swatted the hand away from his hair as Matthew and James placed their bags in the storage compartments. “Shouldn’t I be telling that to you, _puppy_?” Alfred asked as Matthew took a seat next to the human while James sprawled out on the seat opposite of them, his back resting against the wall.

 

Matthew snorted softly, rolling his eyes and pecking Alfred’s cheek before wrapping an arm around the human’s waist and leaning against him. “Honestly, you two, let’s try to make this trip enjoyable. It’s all of our birthdays basically, after all, right?” he asked, glancing between the hellhound and human.

 

James’s eyebrows scrunched together in thought, a small frown on his lips before shrugging and crossing his arms behind his head and closing his eyes. “I don’t really...have a birthday,” he started slowly, “but you’re right. This is sort of a trip for all of us, so we should make the most of it. It’s not everyday that we end up going to the human world after all...”

 

Silence enveloped the trio for a few moments before the sound of the train’s whistle pierced the air, the passenger carriage jolting slightly with the first movements, though the train itself made no noise as it glided down the tracks. Alfred moved closer to the window, glancing out as the platform fell away behind them, fading away as the train gathered speed and headed further away from Cinereo, the city itself eventually falling away and disappearing from view.

 

The human eventually settled back into his seat, snuggling up against Matthew while the other was reading a book and sipping at a flask with an odd liquid inside that smelled suspiciously of alcohol, James already somehow managing to have passed out in the seat across from them.

 

This was it. There was no turning back now. Hours seemed to pass before they reached the barrier, but that was just part of the magic that went with the train. It made time pass at different rates with each train ride, taking hours for a trip in some instances while only taking mere minutes at other times for the same journey.

 

The barrier that they came across wasn’t necessarily a physical barrier of any kind, like a wall. No, this was the borderlands of where the edges of different worlds and realms connected, blurring together. After all, Cinereo was located in an in-between place, not truly a part of any of the other realms, yet not truly separated from them either.

 

It was when the forested surroundings had started to become looking vaguely familiar and he began to notice some rather memorable landmarks that Alfred jostled the sleeping hellhound awake, looking out the window in awe with Matthew already at his side.

 

“James, is this…?”

 

Yawning groggily, the hellhound rubbed his eyes, moving to stand up behind the pair of lovers, his arms wrapping around Matthew and Alfred as he leaned into them and nuzzled against their necks, still half-asleep as he peppered them with puppy kisses, eliciting a few quiet chuckles from his boyfriends before looking out the window. “Mm… Yep. The great state of Ohio. We’re not too far from where you used to live…” James trailed off as he caught the human’s blue gaze in the reflection of the window, raising an eyebrow at the hesitance and nervousness that seemed to be hidden there.

 

If Matthew noticed any difference in Alfred’s behaviour, he didn’t mention anything, instead leaning into his boyfriends’ warm embrace with a contented sigh before twisting around and pressing a kiss to both James and Alfred’s cheeks. “The train’s about to stop, so how about we get our bags and get ready, eh? Then we can go get something to eat, alright?”

 

The prospect of food immediately had the human beaming and enveloping Matthew and James into a tight hug. “Oh man, I can’t wait to actually get a decent hamburger. The ones in Cinereo always taste a bit weird for some reason,” Alfred said, eyebrows scrunching together before shaking his head. “Though I suppose any food is good food as long as I’m with you two,” the blonde teased with a wink and causing the others to let out an amused snort as they began to gather their belongings.

 

“You’re such a dork, Beloved.”

 

“Yeah, but I’m _your_ dork.”

 

“Shut up. You two are both dorks.”

 

“So says King Puppy Dork himself.”

 

“H-Hey!”

* * *

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me!” Alfred exclaimed, staring in disbelief at the sign in front of them. “A cemetery? We’re going to be eating lunch in a cemetery? Really!?” This had to be some mistake, in Alfred’s mind. Surely they wouldn’t be eating somewhere that there could be dead people in the ground beneath them, right? He’d already seen enough dead people during his brief time in Hell to be able to last him a lifetime. The whole reason he had agreed to get away from Cinereo was to have a small break from the supernatural and just be a normal human that didn’t have to deal with running for his life or fighting off monsters.

 

His worries and fear were only amplified when James didn’t comment and simply walked up to the wrought-iron gates, pushing them open easily and gesturing for Alfred and Matthew to enter the cemetery. Honestly, when he had thought about the prospect of a nice birthday picnic lunch, this was not what he had had in mind.

 

Alfred watched in growing dismay as Matthew winked at him and strolled through the gates, the basket of food in his arms, leaving the human to puff out his cheeks and huff in annoyance. It wasn’t fair. These two totally planned this on purpose, didn’t they? Well, the joke was on them, because there was no way that he was going to go in there.

 

“C’mon, Alfred, we don’t have all day,” James called to him. After a moment of no response, the hellhound added, “We promise that we’ll make it up to you with birthday sex later.”

 

Okay, well, it looked like there was one way.

 

“I swear it better be the best damn sex we’ve ever had, or you’re going to regret it,” Alfred muttered, though really it was an empty threat, arms crossed over his chest as he walked over to James, the taller male wrapping an arm around his waist and pecking his forehead before guiding his human lover up the hill of the cemetery towards where Matthew was setting out the picnic blanket on the ground. Alfred failed to suppress a shiver as he looked back at the gate when it clanged closed seemingly on its own accord.

 

Creepy.

 

James pulled away from Alfred as they reached the top of the hill, going over to Matthew and pressing a gentle kiss to his lips before gesturing for the human to come over and join them. It was a suggestion that Alfred was all too happy to oblige to as the three of them curled up together on the ground, the picnic basket remaining untouched for the time being.

 

It wasn’t until Alfred noticed that James’s gaze had become distant and that the hellhound had fallen quieter than normal, that he finally took notice of the pair of tombstones which were nearby. The names felt familiar in a way, but they didn’t necessarily ring any bells of recognition, barring the fact that they shared the same surname as Alfred.

 

A flicker of confusion flashed in the azure eyes as he turned to face Matthew and James, his lips drawn into a small frown when he noticed their wariness. “Guys… What are you not telling me?”

 

Matthew chewed nervously on his lower lip, pushing up his glasses as he fiddled with the allergy bracelet around his wrist. “Well, we...wanted to surprise you for your birthday and… Ya’akov...” The changeling trailed off, glancing to James.

 

Letting out a breath through his nose, the hellhound tucked a strand of white hair behind his ear, gesturing to where the two headstones rested. “Read those and tell me what they say. What the names are?”

 

“I’m pretty sure you already know how to read, but alright,” the human said, raising an eyebrow before he scooted closer to the stone monument, glancing at the text that was there.

 

_In Memoriam_

 

_Those we love don’t go away._

_They walk beside us everyday…_

_Unseen, unheard, but always near._

_Still loved, still missed, and very dear._

_Do not stand at our grave and weep;_

_We are not there. We do not sleep._

_We are a thousand winds that blow._

_We are the diamond glints on snow._

_We are the sunlight on ripened grain._

_We are the gentle autumn rain._

_When you awaken in the morning hush,_

_We are the swift uplifting rush_

_Of quiet birds in circled flight._

_We are the soft stars that shine at night._

_Do not stand at our grave and cry._

_We are not there, for we did not truly die._

 

Beneath the lines of verse that were carved in the stone were a pair of names.

 

“Christopher Edmund Jones and Elizabeth Alexandra Jones.” Alfred turned back to James, gesturing at the tombstones. “So? What’s the big mystery?”

 

The next three words that left the hellhound’s lips caused Alfred’s world to come crashing to a stop.

 

“They’re your parents.”

 

Matthew smiled sympathetically at Alfred, scooting closer to the human that was frozen in place and rubbing a hand along his back. “It’s okay, Beloved. We just...wanted to be able to show you. That’s why James and I thought of the trip. Since you didn’t really know that much about them, and we thought…”

 

But Alfred couldn’t hear what Matthew was saying, his gaze glued to the two names on the headstone. Names that became increasingly blurry as tears welled up in his eyes. Names. He finally knew their names. In all honesty, even though James had given him a picture of his parents and him, Alfred had never thought of asking his boyfriend more about them, about what their names were. It just seemed like it had been a bit of a sore spot for both of them at the time.

 

“I’m…” Alfred sniffled, pushing his glasses up out of the way as he rubbed at his eyes with the backs of his hands. “Thank you, guys, really. It...really means a lot to me,” the human mumbled out with a weak chuckle as two sets of arms immediately embraced him.

 

Silence permeated the air as the trio remained joined together, seeking comfort in their physical proximity. However, it was only moments later that James ended up breaking the silence once again. “This...isn’t the only thing that we got you, Alfred… There’s something else that I want to show you…”

 

“Something else?” Matthew piped up with confusion. “What else did you have planned?”

 

The hellhound pulled away from the hug and rose to his feet, causing Matthew to frown when the white-haired man moved to stand in front of the grave of Alfred’s parents.

 

“James? What aren’t you telling us?” Alfred asked in almost equal confusion as his changeling boyfriend.

 

“Don’t freak out at what I’m about to do, okay?” James murmured with a small mischievous smile. There were some perks to being the Lord of Death, and this was one of the few times that he chose to use his powers simply because he could. Breathing out slowly, two floating orbs of what appeared to be sentient silver-blue flames slowly took form in the air above the hellhound’s outstretched hands. “ _Vita, in specie mortis._ ”

 

Awed gasps sounded from behind the hellhound as the silver flames rose up out of his hands and began to glow brighter, stretching out until they began to take form into the shape of a man and a woman, both of whom were partially translucent and washed out of colour but appeared to be solid and real and very there at the moment.

 

“Mom? Dad?” Alfred’s voice was a whisper as he slowly stood up and pulled Matthew up with him, teary blue eyes wide and his face pale.

 

“I’ve granted them semi-corporeal forms until sunset. I know that you’re afraid of ghosts, Alfred, but you don’t have to be afraid of them,” James said gently, placing a comforting hand on his lover’s shoulder before reaching up and wiping away a tear with his thumb. “Go say hi,” he urged.

 

Swallowing thickly, Alfred looked skeptically between James and Matthew before his attention turned to pair of figures that were waiting patiently in front of their tombstone for him. His feet eventually began to move, slowly at first until he managed to all but threw himself into the outstretched arms of his parents. They were cold to the touch, and it felt like he would almost fall through their arms if he pressed against them too much, but he could feel them.

 

“Alfred, my baby boy,” Elizabeth cooed, her own eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “Look at you. You’ve grown up so well. We’ve missed you. We’ve missed you so much.”

 

“Happy birthday, son. We’re so proud of you. So very proud of everything you’ve done,” Christopher murmured, a watery smile on his lips. “You’ve grown up into a fine man,” he added, clapping Alfred on the shoulder as Alfred tried not to cry, a wide grin across his face nonetheless.

 

“I’ve wanted to meet you guys forever. I didn’t think that I’d ever…”

 

James hummed softly from where he stood next to Matthew, an arm around his boyfriend’s waist as they watched the touching, albeit tearful, reunion.

 

“You did good, James,” the changeling whispered, leaning his head against the hellhound’s shoulder and lacing their fingers together.

 

“I tried,” the hellhound whispered back, pressing a kiss to the tip of Matthew’s pointed ear, an amused grin tugging at his lips as the changeling shivered despite the early July heat.

 

It was nice, being able to watch Alfred talking to his parents for the first time in well over a decade, even if the meeting was somewhat bittersweet because their time was so limited together.

 

Nevertheless, as the hours passed and the five of them settled down around the picnic basket and snacked on the food they had brought, there was a sense of relief in the air as unanswered questions that had plagued Alfred’s mind suddenly had answers, and he came to know just a little bit more about his parents than he did before.

 

When the time came as the sun began to set beyond the horizon and the first fireworks began to light up the sky, him watching as his parents’ forms slowly dissolved into silver-blue light and ascending into the sky to join the fireworks that glistened there, Alfred could say without a doubt that he had no regrets from joining his boyfriends on their adventure.

 

And as the human let out one last breathy sigh, his lovers pulling him down onto the blanket with them, the three of them settling into a comfortable pile of gently roaming hands and sweet words and lips exchanging soft kisses, Alfred couldn’t think of a time where he had ever felt so loved as he did right then.

 

“Happy birthday, Alfred.”

 

“We love you.”

 

“Thanks, guys. I love you too.”


End file.
